The Territory of Lies

by Ana Stone

  “We’re going to,” Blake promised. “But right now, you and I have a date at a romantic inn. So what do you say we get back on the road?”

  Sydney smiled and looped her arms around his neck. “I say, yes. A canopy bed and fresh country air sounds divine.”

  Blake crushed her against him in a passionate embrace. They were both breathing harder when the kiss ended. “Much more of that and we won’t make it to the canopy bed,” he teased.

  Sydney nuzzled his neck and he reluctantly pushed her away. “Damn, you sure make it hard on a man.”

  She laughed and moved back a little from him. “So, what are you waiting on? To the inn, driver!”

  Blake reached for the keys in the ignition but before his fingers touched them a black van with tinted windows slid to a stop behind them, billowing dust and blocking the path. Two men dressed in camouflage fatigues jumped out of the front and started towards the car.

  Blake reached for the glove compartment where his gun was hidden. It was locked. He didn’t have time to unlock it before Sydney’s door jerked open and one of the men grabbed her. She screamed and struggled with the man as he pulled her out of the car.

  Blake’s door opened and he looked at the man standing outside the car. “Who are you and what do you want?” he asked as he got out of the car and faced the man.

  “I think we need to have a little talk, Mr. Edwards,” the man replied then looked over at his partner who was trying to hold Sydney still. “Put her in the van.”

  “No!” Blake started to make a move to go around the car as Sydney started screaming and kicking at the man who held her. “Let her go. Whatever this is, she has no part of it.”

  “She shouldn’t have, that’s true,” the man beside him agreed. “But you give us little choice, Mr. Edwards. You haven’t upheld your end of the arrangement.”

  Blake’s eyebrows drew together in a tight frown. “What the hell are you talking about? He whirled around and pointed at the man who had hold of Sydney’s arm, twisting it up behind her. And don’t make a move!”

  “Blake!” she shouted as she tried to stomp the man’s feet.

  Blake reached his limit. He took a swing at the man beside him, feeling a satisfying crunch as his fist met the man’s nose. Blood spurted but the man didn’t go down. He staggered slightly then came back with a solid punch to Blake’s midsection. Blake absorbed the blow, trying not to wheeze from the impact and went at the man again.

  While they were fighting, the man holding Sydney was pushing her along towards the van. She kept kicking at him and landed one lucky kick that met his right knee. He stumbled and she managed to break free. He threw his free arm up as she snatched up a rock off the ground and threw it at him. It caught him in the middle of the forehead, hard enough to split the skin. As blood washed down his face he lunged at her and knocked her down. She hit the ground flat on her back.

  By that time Blake had succeeded in overcoming his adversary. He left the man unconscious on the ground and raced towards Sydney. She was trying to catch her breath and scramble backwards at the same time as her attacker moved in on her. Blake jumped him from behind, driving him to the ground. This battle was brief. One blow to the back of the head and the man was out cold.

  Sydney was on her knees when Blake looked up and saw the panel door of the van opening. He grabbed her arm, yanked her up and shoved her behind him. “Run!” he shouted, keeping his eye on the van.

  “No, I won’t leave you.”

  “Go!” he yelled. “Now!”

  She hesitated for a moment then took off down the dirt road. Blake faced the two men who got out of the van. “Well, Mr. Edwards.” The heavy-set man with cold-cropped gray hair smiled. “It seems that once again I’ve underestimated you.”

  “Who are you?” Blake watched the second man warily as he started moving away from the older man.

  The older man laughed. “You can cut the crap. Your little friend’s long gone. You reneged on our deal.”

  “Deal?” Blake looked at the man like he was crazy. “What the hell are you talking about?”

  “Sir!” The younger man interrupted the conversation and pointed in front of Blake’s car.

  The older man and Blake both looked at the same time the younger man ran to the front of the car. Blake saw Sydney jump up from her hiding place and throw a large rock at the man. It hit him in the right cheek, drawing blood. She turned to flee as the man’s hand went to his face but he ran after her and tackled her from behind. Sydney kicked and screamed like a wild animal but the man managed to get her to her feet and jerk her around, forcing her to the van where Blake stood.

  “Get your hands off me!” Sydney barked, hitting at the man with both fists.

  He released her by pushing her over to Blake. Blake caught her and pushed her behind him. “I think you people have me confused with someone else. I don’t know you and I sure as hell don’t have any deal with you. So, I suggest you get back in your vehicle and get the hell out of here.”

  The older man chuckled. “Very convincing, my friend. But I’m afraid it’s gone too far for your little act now. I came to deliver a message. You have three days to live up to your end of the arrangement. After that the general will terminate your bargain. Do I make myself clear?”

  “As mud,” Blake replied. “I don’t−“

  “Save it for your lady friend,” the older man interrupted. “Maybe you can fool her. For now, just remember what I said. Three days then we come looking for you. And next time, we won’t be playing.”

  Blake didn’t respond. He had no idea who the men were or what they were talking about. Mutely, he watched them gather up their comrades and load them into the van then pull away. Sydney watched in silence until the van pulled out onto the hard surface road and pulled away then she moved from behind him. “What was that all about?”

  “I have no idea. I’ve never seen those guys before.”

  She looked at him doubtfully. “They seemed to know you. If this is part of something you can’t talk to me about then just say so, I’ll understand.”

  “It’s not,” he said earnestly. “God as my witness, I’ve never seen any of those men before and I have absolutely no idea what this was all about.”

  “Curious.” She looked toward the road where the van had been. “How did they know where you were?”

  Blake looked at the car then at her. “Either we’re bugged or we were followed. Either way, I think it’s time we got out of here.”

  “I tend to agree.” She walked to the car and started to get in but stopped and looked at him over the roof. “But you do have to admit now that it’s all over - it was exciting.”

  Blake could not have been more surprised if she had told him she used to be a man. He could admit to himself that now the danger had passed he was on a kind of adrenaline high but he would never in a million years have imagined that she would feel that way.

  Just goes to show that you never really know anyone, he thought as he stared at her. “You think that was exciting?”

  “Yes.” She grinned and got in the car, sliding over close to him as he got in. “So did you,” she continued, putting her hand on his chest. “I can feel it.”

  Blake reached for the keys but she stopped him. “Wait.”

  “For what?”

  “This.” She climbed on his lap, straddling his legs so that her back was pressed up against the steering wheel as she wrapped her arms around him and kissed him passionately.

  “Syd,” he tried to protest as her lips moved to his neck and her fingers fumbled with the buttons on his shirt. “It’s broad daylight!”

  “So?” She didn’t pause in her actions.

  “So, this isn’t exactly the time or place.”

  “Yes it is,” she argued huskily, continuing to kiss and undress him.

  Blake couldn’t deny that at that moment he was very worked up. And she wasn’t making it easy to say no. She slid off him and knelt beside him to pull his shirt down o
ver his arms. He pulled his hands free as she reached for the button on his pants. Before he could toss the shirt aside her hand closed on him and her lips met his.

  There was no turning back after that. Clothes were thrown in disregard into the floorboard and out of the window. Sydney opened her door and got out of the car, pulling on Blake’s hand for him to follow her. She led him to the front of the car, kissing and fondling him every step of the way.

  He felt as if he would explode with pent up desire when she lay back on the hood of the car and pulled him to her, wrapping her legs around his waist as he slid into her hot center. His mind went blank to everything else as she writhed against him. At that moment the universe was composed only of her and their passion.

  Friday, April 28

  Washington, D.C.

  Sydney turned to Blake as he pulled up in front of the Watergate Apartments. “I wish we could have stayed,” she said softly as she put her hand against the side of his face. “It was so wonderful just to forget everything for a little while.”

  Blake took her hand and kissed it. “It was. Only, next time I think we should actually see the restaurant and the grounds.”

  “Oh, I don’t know.” She chuckled lightly. “I had a pretty fantastic view, myself. And I think I could live for days off champagne and strawberries.”

  He smiled and pulled her to him. “As soon as all this is over, we’ll take a real vacation. We’ll go somewhere exotic and warm where no one can find us and be beach bunnies.”

  “You promise?”

  “You’ve got my word on it.”

  “I’ll hold you to it,” she promised and kissed him slowly. “Blake, will you promise me you’ll be careful while I’m gone? If those men− “

  He put his finger to her lips to silence her. “Syd, I swear I don’t know who those men were but I assure you I’ll be careful. And I’ll breathe a whole lot easier when you get back so do me a favor. You be careful and if anything, however small makes you think you’re in danger you call, okay?”

  “I will.” She looked down at her watch. “Well, I guess I better go. I’ll call you as soon as I get back.”

  Blake nodded then kissed her once more and watched her get out of the car and walk away. He hated to see her go. Not only because he knew she was going to get on Zayne’s yacht and sail away, but because last night had been the most memorable night of his life.

  As if sensing or sharing his feelings, she stopped and looked back before she entered the building to blow him a kiss and wave. He returned the wave then put his car in gear and pulled out of the parking lot, thinking about her and paying no attention to the car that pulled out behind him.

  If someone would have told him a week ago that she would suddenly turn into a wild, almost wanton lover, he would have laughed at them and told them that she was entirely too reserved for that. But he would have been dead wrong. From the time of the attack on the roadside until this morning when they left Virginia she seemed as if she could not get enough.

  He was shocked at how excited the danger made her but he had to admit that her excitement sure stimulated his own. She had made him feel like he was twenty-two again, instead of forty-two. How long he could keep up with her in her present state was anyone’s guess, but it would sure be fantastic while it lasted.

  Sex wasn’t the only thing that had been great, however. She really opened up and talked to him about things that happened in her past; about Daniel Boorman and her husband Evan Mallory. They had talked about her dreams to be a writer and he had even discovered that the reason she had such a good throwing arm was that she had played Little League baseball when she was a kid.

  She’d been a pitcher, in fact and her team had gone to the Little League World Series when she was twelve and she had pitched three shut-outs before she was hit in the arm by a wild pitch and fractured the bone. That had been her last year playing baseball. By the time the next season rolled around she had blossomed into a young woman.

  Blake felt like they had gotten closer the past twenty-four hours than they had in all the months they had known one another. And from the closeness came a new sense of trust that was a major relief to him. He felt sure that she had no romantic interest in Zayne and was equally sure that she did love him. That made it possible for him to keep his mouth shut about her taking the trip with Zayne.

  His cell rang and he picked it up from the seat. “Hey GW. Yeah, I’m headed that way, want me to stop by and give you a lift? Sure, no problem. Be there in about fifteen minutes.”

  He put the phone down on the seat and lit his first cigarette since leaving Washington the day before. It tasted harsh and biting. He stubbed it out in the ashtray, still unaware of the car that followed close behind.

  

  Sydney had just finished dressing when the doorbell rang. She ran to answer it and found a man she had never met standing outside. “Can I help you?”

  “Good morning, Doctor Forrest. My name is Gustave. I am in the employ of Mr. Zayne and am here to take you to his yacht.”

  “I thought Adrian was going to pick me up?” She felt a little uneasy about getting in a car with someone she didn’t know.

  “Unfortunately, Mr. Zayne was detained with some important business matters. He instructed me to assure you that he will meet you at the marina. If you like I will call and let you verify it with him.”

  “No, that won’t be necessary.” She felt a little foolish.

  “Very well, may I carry your luggage?”

  “That’s it right there.” She pointed to the two cases by the door.

  He picked up the suitcases and she followed him out, making sure the door was locked. Downstairs he put the luggage in the back of the limousine then opened the rear door for her. Sydney got in and started in surprise. There was another man in the car.

  “Good morning, doctor.” Se smiled as he extended his hand toward her. She did not see the syringe in his hand until it was too late. A moment later she felt a sting in the side of her neck. She reached for the door handle but the man pulled her back and held onto her as she struggled and screamed. Her fight was short lived for within seconds she felt the effects of the drug. She tried to keep from losing consciousness but to no avail. Before they had traveled a block she was out cold.

  Chapter Ten

  Saturday, April 29

  Washington, D.C.

  Blake woke to the persistent sound of the doorbell. He ran his hands through his hair and yawned as he checked the time. It was just before seven in the morning.

  He grabbed a pair of cotton pants with a drawstring waist and stepped into them as he made his way down the hall. When he opened the door he found Weasel smiling at him, holding a fast food bag that smelled temptingly of steak and egg biscuits and two large styrofoam cups of coffee.

  "Wake up call, dude," Weasel said as he walked inside.

  "Maybe for you," Blake remarked as he closed the door and covered another yawn with his hand. "I didn't get to bed until after four."

  "Well, hell, if I'd known you were burning the midnight oil I'd have come by before you sacked out." Weasel started unloading the contents of the bag. "Got some news, chief."

  Blake perked up at the words but held up one hand as Weasel started to continue. "How about giving me ten minutes then fill me in."

  "Sure thing," Weasel started on one of the biscuits. "Take your time."

  Ten minutes later Blake was showered and dressed and felt almost normal again. He walked into the kitchen, took a seat at the table, pulled the top off the cup of coffee Weasel pushed over in front of him along with a couple of biscuits.

  "So, let's hear it," he said then took a bite of steak and egg.

  "Our boy made contact," Weasel reported with a grin. "Got a call from Jack. Adrian wants to meet with him tonight."

  Blake stopped in motion as he was lifting his coffee to his mouth. "Tonight? You sure about that?"

  "Absolutely."

  "But he's supposed to be on a cruise with
Syd."

  "So, maybe they decided to come back earlier than planned."

  "Maybe," Blake considered the possibility with relish. He would like nothing better than to have Sydney off that yacht and away from Zayne. "So, what did Senator Forrest have to say exactly?"

  "Zayne said he had something extremely important to discuss with the illustrious Senator - something regarding a certain Mr. Armand and some upcoming legislation."

  "Sounds like the fish has taken the bait."

  Weasel nodded enthusiastically. "Now all we have to do is reel him in."

  Blake would like to think it would be that easy but something told him that Zayne would not be so simple to trap. So far he hadn’t done what they predicted and Blake didn’t want to be overconfident. "Get everyone in place, and make sure the meeting place is wired. I want audio and video on this one."

  "Consider it done." Weasel said with a smile. "We've got him, man. Dead to rights."

  "I hope you're right," Blake replied. "'Cause to be honest, I'm really getting tired of Adrian Zayne and this whole mess. I want to see him behind bars and I want to see it fast."

  

  Sydney gasped as a combination of ice cold water and blinding white light brought her abruptly out of sleep. She covered her eyes with her hands, shivering in the cold and trying to determine if she was still alone or if there was someone else in the room.

  She had no idea where she was or how long she had been there. All she knew was that she had awakened some time ago in this room, naked and cold. The room was completely devoid of furniture with white concrete walls and floor and a white ceiling that loomed at least twenty feet overhead.

  Apparently, the temperature was controlled from some other location, as were the lights and the water controls in the ceiling. She’d experienced suffocating heat and frigid cold, along with blackness so deep that she couldn’t distinguish her own hand in front of her face; and light so intense that it obliterated her sight.